Naples

The polyhedrial city of Naples

Naples is known all over the world for its multifaceted character, partly due to the liveliness of its inhabitants, and partly due all the inherited influences by the past foreign dominations that helped to shape the character of this warm and hospitable city. In fact, Naples has absorbed throughout history culture like Greeks, Romans, Normans, Swabians, Angevins, Aragonese, Saracens, Spaniards, Bourbons and Savoy becoming part of the Neapolitan culture. All this makes Naples eclectic from a cultural, artistic and architectural point of view, but also unique in character, with influences that were so different but incredibly absorbed by locals, giving it a highly romantic personality. In fact, Naples is also special for music, cuisine, crafts, theater, superstitions, myths and legends. A city that has helped to export Italianness to the entire world.

Naples has the largest historic center in Europe, even declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1995. Still in 2017, the UNESCO Org. declares “The Art of the Neapolitan Pizza Maker” as World Heritage Tradition. Moreover the Neapolitan Pizza is Traditional Specialty Guaranteed, scilicet the European protected brand STG for very important traditions. The pizza is one of only two Italian products to deserve the brand, the other is mozzarella, another food produced in Campania and also main ingredient of Neapolitan pizza, Margherita. Also from the Neapolitan forges there is the music exported all over the world. Classic example is’ O Sole mio, carried out in the last years of the twentieth century by the famous tenor Luciano Pavarotti, but also Santa Lucia, Torna a Surriento, and many others they became Italian music icons par excellence. Another important tradition of Naples exported all over the world is the crib, i.e. a representation of Jesus Nativity, revisited in a seventeenth-century key, but also modern version with very famous people from all over the world.

Geographically Naples has 954 244 inhabitants (2019), is the third Italian city by population and the first by density. The city is the capital of both the homonymous metropolitan city (over 3,115,320 inhabitants) and the Campania region. Naples is located almost in the center of the gulf, a position that allowed for centuries to have a main role in many historical events.

The history of Naples has origin in the myth, which sees the rise of the village in the legend of the marine goddess Parthenope. Historically, the city was founded by the Greek Cumans in the 9th century BCE and Its first foundation was called Parthenope, located on the Islet of Megaride, where stands today Castel dell’Ovo. Then the place was abandoned in the 8th century BCE for the main land, re-founded in a new city, precisely Neapolis (from the Greek means exactly “new city”).

Still within the metropolitan city of Naples, there are 3 islands among the most beautiful in Italy: Capri for its glamorous imprint, Ischia for relaxation and wellness with its spas and Procida for its romantic peculiarity. The Sorrento peninsula is perfect place for holiday, also very close to the Famous Capri and Amalfi Coast. While the Phlegrean peninsula, although less touristy, is so loved by Neapolitans for its glamorous clubs and excellent fish restaurants, including also Baia, a large lagoon with a protected marine area and very important place for bradyseism phenomenon.

Last but not least is the Vesuvius, the most known volcano in the world and also the most dangerous, due the dense population that lives at its feet. The Neapolitan people fear and venerate this huge giant, making it the truth symbol of the whole Gulf. But this area has many great volcanos such as Campi Flegrei and Ischia Island. The first is classified a super volcano, there are only five super volcanoes in the world and Campi Flegrei is one of them. Having a 10 km caldera, which above are built small local towns such as Pozzuoli, make the volcano also very risky; the other volcano is submarine type, which is precisely the island of Ischia.

Naples enjoys a Mediterranean clime with mild and rainy winters and hot and dry summers, but also refreshed by wind thanks to the location near the sea. For these climatic conditions, Naples has been a destination for rest and leisure since Roman times.

As for the language, Italian is officially the language, but Naples has its own dialect: Neapolitan declared linguistic heritage by UNESCO, is the most spoken idiom which Neapolitan people recognize them self. So it is not surprising that many foreigners, who study Italian, they do understand little or nothing when talking to locals.

While in the religious sphere Naples has strong Christian-Catholic ancestry, also nicknamed “the city of the five hundred domes“, for this same reason is one of the richest cities with worship places in the world.

After a short introduction to all the historical, cultural and geographical notions about Naples, let’s move on to entertainment and daily life of this city.

Street art is a constantly growing phenomenon, which street artists create even huge art works for the redevelopment entire neighborhoods. The phenomenon attracts thousands of tourists every year giving new chances to devolve new business.

It is definitely an ideal destination for those who love shopping. In fact, Naples offers a wide range of economical possibilities; it has varying prices from each area. You can walk through prestigious boutiques to cheaper stores, or through the popular markets. Renowned shopping streets for the most important Italian brands are via dei Mille, Via Filangieri, Via Calabritto and Via Carlo Poerio. While for cheaper budgets, you find shops in via Toledo and Corso Umberto. Last but not least there are markets in Posillipo for original clothes; Porta Nolana i.e. the old fish market, where you can find from clothing to food to all kind of objects; While the antiques market takes a place in the Riviera di Chiaia, in the municipal park; The last and the most frequented by the Neapolitans, is the Poggioreale market where you can buy anything, but is quite hard to get there (we recommend to be accompanied).

About Naples by night, you have a quite large selection. In the historic center it is frequented most of by Neapolitan and foreign students, here you can go eat a Pizza for a very cheap price, or have a drink in one of the most crowded square like Piazza Bellini. However the Riviera di Chiaia is more chic with many cocktails bars. While if you decide for some night club, the Phlegraen peninsula has some really nice one on the coast, with sea front. The variety is not lacking in this city for sure.

While if you are looking for beaches they are a few nearby the City center, the rest are about 40 minutes faraway from Naples, but car, motorbike or train can easily reach them. The nearest one can be found in Posillipo area, Marechiaro is one of these, the same goes for Parco di Gaiola, both are awesome places, and the last has also a protected marine area with submerged archaeological park. More variegated are the beaches of the Sorrento coast, between sandy and rocky, and are located on the bottom of high promontories. While in the Phlegrean cost, Bacoli and Miseno have beaches with fine sand and low seawater. Also very nice is Baia, especially for its protected marine area, here you can appreciate in the submerged park the Bradyseismic phenomena.

In short, Naples is a mixture of nuances that certainly do not go unnoticed.

Province